Archives by Tag 'Phil Barnes'

A defender’s individual approach and body positioning are key skills for a strong team defense. Phil Barnes is the Assistant Coach on the University of North Carolina Women’s Lacrosse team, led by Head Coach Jenny Levy. In this segment Coach Barnes has his players work to improve their approach.

Roof J Drill

Drill Setup: This drill is setup with 2 players, a defender and an attacker, a goal and 3 cones that form a large triangle or the “roof of the defense.” This roof, helps the defender follow a path to force the ball carrier away from the middle of the 8m and 12m arch, and down the wing to a less threatening area.

Athlete Movement: To start the drill, the attacker will receive the ball and the defender will perform a “J” to gain good positioning on the ball carrier. The ball carrier will then attempt to work their way to the front of the goal challenging the defender. With good positioning, the defender forces the ball carrier around the 3 cones or “over the top of the roof” and down to a less threatening area. The ball carrier has the option to change direction a few times to challenge the defender’s stance.

In this drill, the crucial element of making the correct step to the ball is reinforced by Phil Barnes, Assistant Coach for the 2013 NCAA Championship – University of North Carolina Women’s Lacrosse team. You will learn a simple, yet effective workout that involves many repetitions to create muscle memory.

Stepping Drill

Player Movements: Breakdown begins with the first step or lead step, then by the back foot following and finishing even with the lead foot. This teaches the goalie to be in a ready position after each save.

Drill Essentials: Notice the proper form is displayed, then repeated multiple times to create “muscle memory”.

Drill Tips: Make sure the stick head and foot arrive at the same time. It’s fundamental in getting to the ball and making the save.

A major part of a goaltender’s success stems from the first step. Developing that initial step will enable you to get to balls quicker, develop better range, and ultimately contribute towards improved performances.

This week, North Carolina women’s lacrosse coach Phil Barnes reveals his top overall goaltending keys before leading you through effective stepping drills for warm-ups and practice. These easy-to-implement drills will train the stick and the feet to get to the seven defensive areas of the cage and go a long way towards developing overall goaltending skills.

Goalkeeping Keys

1) Technique — Your number one priority as a goalie is to stop the ball. If a goalie has has good technique, they will be able to do that. Remember, there’s only so many movements to make, so the variables are not the same as a defender or attacker. In the end, technique is what will put a goalie over the top.

2) Hand-eye Coordination and Intelligence — If a goalie has above average hand-eye coordination, they can probably do everything you want them to do from a technique standpoint.

3) Mental Toughness — Goalies will see a lot of shots and the ball will go in. There is responsibility around this. If a goalie isn’t mentally tough, you may want to find a different one. You may end up working more on the mental side than the physical side of things.

Stepping

We’re looking to improve that first step to the ball so you can get there quicker. The following stepping warm-up drills train the stick and feet to get to the seven defensive save areas. It also focuses on a quick and clean stick turnover.

There are tons of different theories on how you should lead warm-up drills for stepping. For Coach Barnes, it starts with the first step/lead step/attack step. The second step is something that occurs naturally. Therefore, our first concern is how quick is that first step to the ball. If the first step is slow, you will never get to the ball regardless of how quick you get your second step there.

Stick Side Low – Players should assume ready positioning and then repeatedly make stick-side low movements using their first step. No saves or balls are used in these drills. Every fourth rep, have the players step with two steps (so they keep that habit of bringing the second foot).

Key: Look for quick and clean turnover here. Also, remember the stick and first step hit the ground at the same time.

Non-Stick Side Low — Put an emphasis on the stick and first step getting there at the same exact time. Notice players hold the save positioning for a few seconds so they can get that muscle memory in there (about three seconds). Mix up the reps every time you run this drill (anywhere between 6 and 20 reps).

Going High — Keep in mind that the first step is always the same for any save. Nothing changes.

Stick Side High — Concentrate on raising the stick up high. If you tilt the stick back, the ball may go over your stick.

Non-Stick Side High — Here, we’ll implement the “Windshield Wiper” technique. Using the wrists, arms, and shoulders, drive them all together. Keep the stick straight so you don’t lose your angle to the ball. On every fourth rep, continue to step with two feet.

Stick Side Mid — We’re using the exact same motion here as we do going for low saves. We’re looking for a complete stick turnover in order to translate to a low save technique.

Non Stick Side Mid – Don’t forget to keep that same distance between your chest and the stick.

Typically, this warm-up drill will go for five minutes. Look to go for about 8-15 reps, maybe 21 per practice. Remember, technique is what separates good keepers from average ones and you can fall back on it time and time again.